Okay...I know that this genre isn't really welcome in the Phantom category, but I just had to! Yes it is a modern tale thing-a-mabobber! I just was daydreaming while I was swimming and this popped into my head. Please don't hate me.
Disclaimer- I own absolutely nothing. Please don't think I do.
Dedication: I owe this to Erik. He is so sexy...get out of the way Christine!
A different sky looked down on the Paris Opera House. For one thing, it was a totally different century. The 21st to be exact. The Opera House, however, had not lost any of it's old-world charm that had people flocking to it, not only to see the architecture, but the plays and to hear of the history.
There were many people that still live there. They are all different, but united for a single cause. To produce the most magical performances in the world. There were many races there, and many ages. The children know were taught everything they needed to know. Math, sciences, English, French, Italian and many other things including how to act, how to build scenery and how to do anything that might need to be done.
But beneath the clean floors, bright lights and musical scores, a secret lies hidden, waiting for just the right time to revel its, or himself.
Katrina tripped over a chord as she dashed from one side of the stage to the other, dropping several plastic ivy branches and dropping to her knees painfully. It didn't help that she was wearing her work jeans, the ones with the huge gaping holes in the knees, held together with safety pins. She hurriedly gathered up the fallen branches and scooted out of the way of some of the bigger set pieces.
It was a big night. They were doing a pretty popular opera, and the royal family from Britain was coming, along with the Prime Minister. Katrina dumped the ivy vines in the prop room. She wiped sweat from her forehead, noticing that her hair, a distinct hue of purple this week, was getting in her eyes. She whipped it up into a high ponytail with the purple/silver elastic-band that she always kept on her wrist. She hurried backstage, only to find herself confronting the director, a mountain of a man, Monsieur Hedgecliff.
"What do you think you're doing?" he bellowed. "We're moving the scenery! Get your sorry a-- to your post!"
She saluted, then dashed off to the line that would move the backdrop to the top of the rafters. She looked across the stage, looking for the familiar chubby face of Matthew. She saw it and nodded curtly. Then she started to heave on the line. Slowly, but gaining speed, it went up. As it went, Katrina listened to the big star of tonight's performance, Valerie VanGetz. She was some big star from the stages of the courts and the American stages. She was supposed to be quite good.
'Che-yah...maybe once upon a time...like, one million years ago...' Katrina thought as Valerie hit a high sour note and held it, as Monsieur Hedgecliff cooed at her. Katrina winced as Valerie hit an even higher, and much sourer, note. She noticed that the rope wouldn't move when she heaved on it. She looked up. The backdrop was in position. She quickly tied the rope into a double-wedge knot, then dashed up the stairs to the rafters. She could only hope that Matthew was on his way.
When she reached the balcony that the backdrop rested beneath, waiting for the ropes that would secure it. Matthew, of course, was no-where in sight. She growled, then bent in her task. As she finished tying up the first set of ropes, she thought that she heard a foot-fall behind her. She turned, but there was no-one there, not even a resident bat. She shrugged, then tightened the knot aggressively.
'Oh yeah, bucko, Matthew, you have put yourself into the biggest crap pile, and that excuse better be great!' she thought as one of the ropes slipped out of her hand. She reached for it, and just as she snagged it, she felt herself start to tip forward.
"Ohmigod-!" she started, just as she felt someone grab her shirt. "It's about time, Lard-Butt! Haul me up now!" As she was pulled to safety, she scolded. "You have some nerve, leaving me up here, and that excuse of yours-" The words died on her lips when she saw who it was. "Oh-h, Orry. Hey."
Orry grinned, and pulled her over the edge, to safety. He then sat on the ground, crossed his arms and just looked at her. The silence was awkward at the very least. She finished tying off the second restraining ropes, then sat and looked at him. "Well?" he finally said.
"Well...what?" she asked, blushing ever so slightly.
"Well, what do you mean by yelling at me?" he asked grinning.
"I, um...thought that you were...ummmmm...Matthew. He's supposed to be helping me and well...he's not very helpful."
Orry just laughed, then lay on his stomach and started to tie the last restraint.
"Hey, that's my job!" she protested, trying to swat him out of the way, an impossible feat, as Orry was 6'8".
"Well, I'm doing it because I want to talk to you, and you won't talk until jobs are done." he said, starting to tie the knot.
"True, true." she said, sitting back and enjoying a few seconds of silence, as she watched Orry get the job done faster than she ever could. He then stood up, dusted off the front of his black shirt, then sat down again.
"So," he began, leaning against a support beam, "What's with the hair?"
"Oh," she said, tugging at a few strands that had come loose, "I change it every week. It matches my favorite color for the week."
"I'll bet it's never pink."
Katrina shuddered. "God forbid. So when did you get back from Versailles?"
"An hour or so ago." he replied. They spent the next half-hour sitting and chatting. Matthew came up at some point, but Katrina chewed him out so bad that he went back down, red-faced. As they finally fell silent, Katrina heard the five-o-clock bells from the church. She leapt up, panic-stricken.
"Ohmigod! Everyone will be arriving in an hour!" she cried. "I have to eat, get in my costume, and get in position!" She started off.
"You have a part?" asked Orry, unable to believe it. Valerie was so picky.
"No. Miss. Valerie VanGetz, Everything-Must-Be-Perfect-Or-I-Will-Die-Of-Shame insisted that the ushers all wear costumes that matched the production."
"So? What are you wearing?"
Katrina gritted her teeth. "A fairy-princess costume."
"Purple?"
"Pink..." He started to laugh. "Shut up." she snarled, moving again to the ladder. "What am I doing?" she muttered, coming back. "I need to take the new way down."
"The new way?" asked Orry, wiping his eyes with the back of a hand. "What new-?" That's as far as he got before Katrina took a running leap and leaped off of the balcony. "What the h---?" he yelled, running to the edge. Looking over it, he saw her clinging to a pole and whizzing down. He shook his head as she hit a piling of soft stuff below, then leaped up and dashed off.
'She's still the daredevil of the Opera House then.' he thought, starting down the normal way. 'When did she come up with that?'
Later that night, Katrina scratched at a itch that had been building up all night in her tights that had rhinestones glittering in so many places.
"Only forty more minutes..." she muttered. "Only forty more minutes...I can do this..." she muttered, then she caught sight of herself in a full-length mirror. Bright pink fairy dress, pink slippers, her hair was curled and had glitter worked through it. Plus way too much glittery make-up and rhinestones. And the wings were giant white gauzy things with...what else?...pink glitter all over.
"I can't do this...I can't do this!" she cried, scratching at her neck, arms and head. Madame Yowling smacked her hand away as she passed. Katrina bowed respectfully, but as soon as Yowling turned, went back to scratching. She then stared at her nails, which had been scrapped clean of her Hot-Date nail-polish and re-polished with Tickle-Me-Pink. She was drowning in the hated pink.
"You doing alright?' asked Orry, who had appeared out of no-where, supporting a black cape that went with his back-stage outfit. He looked so dashing in it.
"Neat cape. I-am-about-to-die...I swear." she moaned, collapsing into a chair and putting a hand to her forehead. He sat next to her, relaxing from running around like a chicken with his head cut off. Suddenly, Liana, their friend, came up.
"'Ello, Orry. It iz nice to see you 'ere again." she batted her eyes a few seconds longer than necessary.
"Hello yourself, Liana. Nice to see you too. Versailles was magnificent. I wish you could have seen it. By the way, what are you dressed as?"
Liana smiled. "A vater-sprite. I thought zat it vas cute." She tugged at the top layer of blue gauze and sparkles. She had blue and green ribbons intertwined through her braids, and a crown of water lilies upon her head.
"So, what are we gonna do about the prank tonight?" asked Orry, leaning in as Liana swept away, miffed that he wouldn't pay anymore attention to her.
"I have no idea." said Katrina bluntly, scratching at her itches again. "What were you thinking of?"
"Well, you know how we sound together when we sing...so...why don't we sing what we've been practicing?" he asked, his grey-green eyes sparkling.
"Should we? You do know what they say about those songs." replied Katrina, leaning in as well. She glanced around, no-one was paying attention to her or Orry.
"Yeah, tonight's a good night, a full moon's out." he grinned. "Besides, you've never cared about rumors before, so why start now?"
"Orry, those rumors are different and you know it." she hissed. Those songs were strictly forbidden at the Opera Populaire. It had something to do with it's history...there was something about a fire...and...rumors surrounding rumors. It was just so complicated.
"Great, that settles it! We sing after Act II." he said. "I'll bring you something more suitable for the piece."
"But-!"
"See ya!" he dashed off as Katrina smote her forehead with her palm. 'Idiot...' she thought viciously. 'I hope nothing goes wrong later...'
After Act II, Katrina stood in front of everyone with Orry on her left. He nodded. She gulped. 'Well, here goes nothing...' she thought as she startd to sing.
"In sleep he sang to me,
In dreams he came,
That voice which calls to me,
And speaks my name,
And do I dream again?
For now I find
The Phantom of the Opera is there,
Inside my mind..."
When she had started, there had been several gasps, even a few mutters, but as she sang, everyone went quiet. Orry took his cue, taking her hand in the same movement.
"Sing once again with me
Our strange duet
My power over you
Grows stronger yet.
And though you turn from me
to glance behind
The Phantom of the Opera is there
Inside your mind..."
He lead her through the crowd, which parted like fish before a shark. All doubts were erased from her mind as the music took over her soul and helped her to sing with pride.
"Those who have seen your face
Draw back in fear
I am the mask you wear..."
"It's me they hear!" sang Orry, every inch the Phantom. They sang together in perfect harmony...
"My/Your spirit and my/your voice
In one combined
The Phantom of the Opera is there
inside my/your mind..."
"Is that the Phantom of the Opera?
Beware the Phantom of the Opera!" yelled a person from the audience, most likely one of the Opera Populaire's own. Katrina ignored them, only having eyes for Orry.
"In all your fantasies you always knew
That man and mystery..." Orry sang, leading her to the gigiantic grand staircase. They stopped at the bottom, and sang for a few more bars.
"Were both in you..."
"And in this labrinth
Where night is blind
The Phantom of the Opera is here/there!"
"Inside my mind..." Orry began to lead her up the stairs, slowly, dragging out the last parts of the songs. Orry almost whispered...
"Sing, my Angel of Music!"
"He's there,
the Phantom of the Opera ..." sang Katrina, then she started those high notes that were so famous. She heard several gasps of admiration and jealously, one definately had a Valerie accent. They had reached the top. They stepped into the center of a circle of marble that was there. When she hit the last note, Orry hit a hidden button, sending them down the trapdoor.
Several people screamed, and several more dashed up the stairs to see what had happened. But the trapdoor closed almost as soon as they had vanished through it, and they could hear the amazed comments that were flying about. Orry and Katrina had a massive giggling fit in the hidden room. But as they were leaving...Katrina heard something...something that Orry did not say...it seemed to come from the very walls...
"Come to your Angel of Music..."